South Texas Wildlife Management

Historical Perspective

The native rangelands of south Texas have long been noted for its cattle industry
and abundant wildlife, especially the trophy white-tailed deer. South Texas contains
some of the states premium deer habitat providing excellent amounts of food and cover.
However, the vegetative diversity and wildlife abundance has not always been what
you see today. History of the settlement and changes in the natural landscape that
took place in the Rio Grande plains can be broken down into three time periods:
Spanish exploration from 1600-1700's, Colonization of Texas from 1821-1863,
and Cattle Empire from 1860- the early 1900's.

Spanish Colonization 1600-1700's

Early Spanish explorers had very diverse descriptions of the region with some
claiming poor grazing areas while others reported rich fertile pastureland. These
discrepancies were due in part to season of travel, amount of rainfall, and route
of travel. Tall grass prairies covered with little bluestem, switchgrass, and other
native grasses sprawled across the eastern half of the region by some accounts,
while the western portion of south Texas in a much drier climate was described as a
short grass prairie. The general consensus among early Spanish explorers was that
the south Texas plains were predominately a prairie interspersed with mesquite,
prickly pear and other woody vegetation. Much of the dense brush was limited to
rivers, creeks, drainages, and in small mottes on the prairie. Natural fires were
a frequent occurrence and kept much of the brush from infesting the prairie. South
Texas was much less brushy 400 years ago than today.

Except for a few buffalo, antelope, and deer, there was very little natural
grazing pressure during this period. Various observers reported deer in all types
of habitat from open prairies, the coastal sand plains with limited brush, into
the dense chaparral and trees. In the Teran expedition of 1691, Manzanet observed
great numbers of buffalo and deer in a "level region without trees" in
northern Medina County. Juan Antonio de la Pena's diary of the Aguayo expedition
of 1722 reported from an area near the Medina/Atascosa County line, "During
the remainder of the day we passed through a flat country and found a great many
deer. We saw around us, almost at the same time, as many as three or four hundred
of these animals."

Colonization of Texas 1821-1863

The American travelers and explorers during the nineteenth
century appeared to show a greater interest in the wildlife of south Texas than
the earlier Spanish explorers. Apparently, these travelers were more dependent on
the natural resources for survival than the well-financed Spaniards who tended to
take livestock with them. During this time there was very little grazing pressure.
Wild horses that were left or escaped from Spanish were common which added to the
native wildlife. As settlement of south Texas increased, livestock steadily began
coming into the region and allowed to range freely. There were no fences at this
time and animals were moved when necessary to better forage. Deer were plentiful
during this period and used for food and hide. Sanchez reported in 1828 as he
approached the Nueces River in southern LaSalle County near the San Antonio-Laredo
road, "herds of deer on fertile plains". In western LaSalle County between
the Frio and Nueces rivers, Bollaert saw "deer in cords" in 1843. He
also saw deer and antelope together as he traveled over "mesquite prairies
with brushy spots" through northwestern Frio and southwestern Zavala counties.
He reported seeing deer or deer sign in McMullen, LaSalle, Frio and Live Oak
counties in thick dense chaparral. In 1844, Kirby-Smith reported in Nueces County
"more deer than I supposed existed in America".

In 1849, Whitigs' hunters brought many deer to his camp located in western
Kinney County. He also reported an abundance of fat and tender venison in some
of the finest mesquite land he had ever seen between Brackettville and the Nueces
River in Uvalde County. In 1853, Bartlett reported deer and antelope in great
numbers in Brooks County that was on a rolling prairie without trees. Continuing
on toward Kingsville, he reported that his party could see miles and saw
"large numbers" of deer and antelope. As he traveled on towards Corpus
Christi where "not a bush or tree was to be seen", his party saw thousands
of deer and antelope and stated that never before had they seen them in such great
numbers. Jack Inglis suggested in "A History of Vegetation in the Rio Grande
Plains" that these great numbers might have resulted from the drift of animals
before a prairie fire they encountered later on. Historical observations of deer
in the thick bottomlands were limited, probably due more to the thick vegetation
and lack of visibility instead of the lack of animals.

The Ranching Empire 1860 - early 1900's

Early ranchers thought the grass would last forever in Texas. As a result, livestock
pressure increased with cattle, sheep and goats, and fencing confined them. Settlement
also decreased natural fires. From the late 1860's through the 1890's many south
Texas counties had more sheep than cattle. Beginning in 1867, 1/2 million sheep
were grazed for 3 decades. In 1880, sheep in south Texas represented 45% of Texas'
sheep population. In 1889 in the Rio Grande Plains had the four leading sheep
producing counties in the state and 10 of the top 15 were in south Texas. The
peak decade was from 1880-1890 at times exceeding 2 million head. Sheep were an
important ecological factor in changing the landscape, and literally grazed themselves
out of south Texas.

The main factors for change in vegetation in south Texas included overgrazing
by livestock, diminished occurrence of natural fire, relatively poor soil (water
penetration, nutritive value, aeration, crusting, etc.), climate and precipitation
fluctuations, and plenty of brush for seed stock. In the past these factors caused
the few natural grazers to rotate to different grazing areas. This region has an
overall poor ability for the land to recover due to climate and soil types. As
vegetation changed and brush increased, deer numbers subsequently increased.

As settlement of south Texas increased, deer harvest increased and quality habitat
decreased. Deer that had survived historically in the open rangelands could no longer
survive there. They were forced into the thicker areas. Besides food deer were hunted
for their hides. Until 1900 market hunting was common throughout southwest and eastern
Texas and even as late as 1925. Sale of deer hides was an important item of trade
before 1900 and many were professionally killed for hides only. Market hunting
occurred in south Texas, but the extent is unknown. The majority of the hunting
from the 1890's through the early 1900's hunting was from ranchers with a few outside hunters.

From 1900 through the 1930's, deer hunting was for meat with little regard for
age or sex. During this time there were lots of good bucks, very few hunters,
large tracts of land, very little access (no roads), few vehicles, and hunting
was hard. Most hunters could trespass for free just by asking. The increase in
brush density was considered the worst thing to happen to the range and in the
late 1930's intensive brush control began that would impact wildlife in Texas
for generations.

Attitudes changed in the 1940's-1950's when hunters began looking for trophy
bucks. Access to hunting areas became easier with more roads and vehicles. The
oil industry precipitated this change to a large extent. Brush control types and
techniques continued and advanced. Landowners found economic incentives through
leasing to begin protecting the deer herd and they began protecting females. The
hunting lease system was in total operation by the 1950 and 1960's and accessibility
increased, as did more vehicles.

In the late 1950's, Texas Game and Fish Commission initiated
the South Central Game Management Survey and began wildlife inventories and research in
south Texas. By the 1950's extensive brush control and eradication was in full
operation. By the late 1960's wildlife managers became concerned about the effect
of brush control on habitat and wildlife. While deer in south Texas have been
plentiful throughout recent history, the numbers of trophy bucks were reportedly
decreasing. By the 1970's deer were an economically important commodity and
management began in earnest!

The history of south Texas from early Spanish exploration, through settlement
and colonization, into the present shows us that managing the habitat and its
resources is the most important and critical aspect of maintaining quality
wildlife populations.